The present disclosure relates generally to search and retrieval of content, and more specifically to improving performance of search and retrieval of electronic messages, such as email messages.
Content generally refers to a type of data, such as an electronic message (e.g., an email message), a video, an image, electronic calendar content (e.g., an electronic calendar entry), or audio. A “content item” as used herein broadly refers to a single item or instance of a type of content (e.g., an electronic message, a video, audio, or an image). A client device (e.g., a mobile phone) can store content items in local cache or memory for relatively fast access. However, availability of computing resources (e.g., memory capacity and processor speed) in a client device can affect the number of contents items that the client device can store and the rate at which the content items can be accessed.
A content service provider can provide access to a remote storage repository for storage of content items. Content service providers can include a message service provider, a video service provider, or other type of service provider that provides access to content items. For example, a message service provider can enable a client device to store and access messages (e.g., email messages) on a storage repository accessed by the message service provider. Message service providers can include, for example, Google Mail®, Yahoo Mail®, Hotmail®, or other mail services. A client device can communicate and retrieve electronic messages stored by a content service provider, such as a message service provider, via a communication protocols support by the content service provider. Communication protocols can include a protocol such as a post office protocol (POP) or an Internet message access protocol (IMAP). A remote storage repository accessible via a content service provider can provide a greater capacity for storage of the content items. However, performance for accessing content items (e.g., messages) from a remote storage repository via a content service provider can be affected by a type of communication connection between the client device and/or the repository as well as a bandwidth of the communication connection.
Many people rely on client devices to manage and store content, such as email, for use in everyday life. As the amount of content increases, people may struggle to manage the volume of content (e.g., messages, images, audio, or video) that is generated daily. Client devices may be unable to provide sufficient storage and timely retrieval of information from a large collection of content. People may depend on content service providers for storage and management of content; however, client devices can encounter performance issues with locating information across multiple accounts, which can be managed by different content service providers. Further, bandwidth and/or latency of communication between client devices and content service providers may further affect performance for retrieval of stored content.